Chapter 4 #2
But just like that, then, she shifted from alert to casual camper. “Ranger Liam. Do you always run this early?”
If he hadn’t seen the transformation happen before his eyes, he wouldn’t have believed it. But he had, and he had no doubt the person she was right now was pure performance. But why? The more he saw this woman, the more questions he had.
She owned the mysterious bus? And why the surveillance equipment?
“I run every morning at six,” he said, also playing a role. “Helps clear my head.”
She frowned and glanced at her watch.
Right—it was just past six, and he’d obviously been running for a while. “I started early today.”
She nodded, then seemed to change her mind about whatever had brought her outside and stepped back up into the bus. “Have a good morning, Ranger Liam.”
“Maybe I can get those photos now?” He wasn’t ready to end this conversation, and there was no way he was letting her slip away again until he had those photos in hand.
“Of course.” Her smile faltered slightly. “I’ll just…be a second.”
Then she disappeared inside the bus, and the pieces clicked into place, sharp and sudden. That was why she had photos. She’d been camped overlooking where those kids had been.
A bead of sweat ran down his nose, and he grabbed the edge of his shirt to wipe his face. The day was starting to warm, and he could smell the sweat that radiated off him. Nice. This wasn’t really the impression he wanted to make on Nimue when he saw her again.
Not that she’d remembered him, so maybe he just needed to Calm. Down.
The door popped open, and he lowered his shirt. Her eyes went wide, fixed on his chest. Maybe he wasn’t making such a bad impression after all. But still, he didn’t want to come off as one of those guys—the smarmy ones always trying to show off their build at every opportunity.
Liam smoothed down his shirt and nodded at the stickers. “You travel a lot.”
She blinked at him, then seemed to snap back into the practiced persona. “What’s that old saying? Trying to find myself.”
He pointed to the hidden camera. “Quite the tech setup for someone finding themselves.”
Her eyes flicked to it, then back to him, and she shrugged. “Oh, you know. I’m a single girl, traveling alone, camping in the middle of nowhere. I love freedom, but I love being safe more.”
That did make sense. Maybe he was overreacting.
She handed him the iPad, and he swiped through the photos, unease returning to his gut.
The shots were crisp—too crisp for an iPad camera.
Each kid’s face was high resolution, clear as day.
Each teen caught mid-laugh or mid-sip, their features unmistakable.
But no wide shots, no context—just tight frames that didn’t show the canyon or the camp’s layout.
She’d been careful, deliberate. These were surveillance photos hunting for information, not snapshots from a casual hiker.
“Any chance you can send me these?” He held up the tablet.
“Take it. Just get it back to me. The password is 1111.” She offered a shrug as if she had no concern for security. “I’ll be here, or back where you saw me the first time.”
His steps faltered. Where you saw me the first time. She knew he’d spotted her before—near the rim. Of course. If he’d spotted her camera, then no doubt she’d observed him seeing it. He turned and met her gaze. Some of her bravado had slipped, and her deep-brown eyes blinked at him.
“Just remember if you go back there that you have to be at least a hundred feet from the edge.”
She gave a quick nod, then hurried back into her camper.
Those teens were priority one—drunk kids didn’t mix with cliffs, and he’d seen too many close calls turn into headlines. But Nimue? She was a puzzle he couldn’t leave alone. When he returned the tablet, he’d definitely be asking more questions.
She had to get back to her prime spot before anyone else spotted her. The longer she stayed in this exposed campground, the higher the chance some tourist with a phone would snap her picture and upload it to social media.
Bad idea, maybe, moving last night, but she’d needed decent reception, power to charge her batteries, and gas for her generator, and the temptation of a long hot shower had been too much.
She never thought she’d walk outside and right into Ranger Hero Liam Kingsley’s sights.
Oops.
And then he’d gone and flustered her. Where you saw me the first time.
Why had she said that? The words had just slipped out—that was why.
There was something about Liam that brought her walls crashing down.
Maybe it was the way his intense blue eyes watched her—one part curious, one part suspicious, and weirdly, she got the sense… one part interested?
Then she’d stepped out of her trailer while he was mopping his forehead with the edge of his shirt. And. Sweet. Heaven. Those abs.
She’d known he was built by the way his shoulders filled out his uniform, but this? Even the memory sent heat flooding her face. Well, the abs and the fact that he’d caught her staring. That faint little smirk—
Yeah, she definitely needed to get her head screwed back on straight.
But she couldn’t afford to be careless. This wasn’t a game—people’s lives were on the line.
She’d been running that very mantra through her mind while transferring the photos to the iPad.
But since she’d shown her hand and announced she knew he’d seen her bus earlier, she might as well head back to her prime spot and end the risk of being caught on a stray iPhone.
What had she been thinking, giving him her iPad? She’d stripped off any identifying information or apps so he couldn’t get far. And she’d given it that ridiculous password to keep up with the persona of the clueless camper.
In truth, she’d intended to simply give him the tablet and drive away.
But he was coming back.
No, no…She needed to go back to being a ghost. Don’t give in to a pair of blue eyes, Nimue. She was smarter than this.
She ignored the uncomfortable pressure that squeezed her chest, pulled her dark hair back into a loose bun, and set to work securing everything for the move.
With a few clicks, the hum of her laptop fans stopped, and she laid the monitor flat before securing it with a strap.
At least she’d visited the fill and dump station yesterday, so she’d be good for a while.
She collected her outside camera, secured everything, and headed out, on her way to her first camping spot, near the overlook. She would grab her cameras and move on.
She’d just turned off the main stretch when the phone rang and Emberly’s face popped up on the screen. Nimue accepted the call, then tapped a few buttons to ensure that no one could tap into the feed.
“Morning, Em.” She propped the phone on the dash, Emberly’s voice filling the cab on speaker.
“What’s the status on Liam?” Emberly asked, her tone heavy with concern.
Nimue’s face warmed yet again. His status this morning was looking pretty spectacular. Maybe she wouldn’t mention that.
“I erased every post that could’ve linked back to me.” Nimue navigated the bus around a bone-jarring rut. “Tagged photos, geotags, comments—all gone. No way the Bratva can trace me through them…unless the accounts repost. I’ve been checking, but so far so good.”
“Good, but you know scrubbing posts isn’t enough, Nim.” Tension threaded through Emberly’s voice. “On the off chance they saw it before you took it down, you need to keep an eye on Liam.”
Wait—what? Nimue’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. She eased the bus between towering pines but stopped farther back than she had last time. “I was just getting ready to move the bus, maybe find a different campground. In, say, Idaho.”
“No. You need to stick around and make sure the Bratva hasn’t found him.”
“Em. Watching Liam means getting closer to the village, risking exposure. I’m barely holding it together as it is.”
She killed the engine, and thick silence settled around her. The endless cycle of hiding, of running, pressed against her ribs like a vise.
Emberly sighed, the sound crackling through the speaker.
“I know it’s a lot, but Bratva don’t hesitate.
If Teresa is hunting you and Liam’s in her line of sight, he’s as good as dead.
I’m not saying follow the guy twenty-four seven, but maybe become his friend.
Enough that you ask the right questions and pick up if he’s seeing anything out of the ordinary.
And hang around enough to see any shadows. ”
“And then what? Knock the bad guys over the head with my laptop? Em, I’m not a Black Swan. I don’t—”
“And then you call me. And Stein. And I hop on a plane and…Aw, I knew it was a bad idea to let you scamper off.”
“You can’t babysit me forever.”
Silence.
“Okay, listen. Fine. I’ll…stick around.” Nimue stepped out of the bus, morning air warming against her skin.
“Have you even seen him?”
“An hour ago. He took my iPad.”
“What?”
“He needed photos of kids who were where they weren’t supposed to be, and I needed an excuse after I broke into the office the other day.”
“So he trusts you. That’s a place to start. Use that to build that connection when he brings the tablet back. It’s just like establishing a field contact. The key is to get him to offer you information without giving too much up in return.”
Just what she wanted. A contact. Liam’s abs flashed through her mind again. She was pretty sure that in all the years Emberly had been a Black Swan, her field contacts hadn’t caused the same reaction.
“He has bigger problems than one lone eccentric camper. And I’m pretty sure he doesn’t trust me—he just needed what I had.”
“Well, he has solid instincts. After all, you are hiding something from him. Those instincts will serve him well if the Bratva do show up. You need to find a way to spend time with him. Build the trust, just enough for you to keep an eye on him.”
Why did being Liam’s friend put her more on edge than hiding from the Bratva? Because there was something about him that made her desperately want a real friendship.
But it couldn’t last. It never lasted.
“I’m in over my head, Em.” Nimue’s voice cracked down the middle. “I hate this. Moving the bus every few weeks, checking every shadow, never sleeping, never safe. I miss…home.”
Home wasn’t just a place—it was safety, stability, a life without fear constantly breathing down her neck. She’d come close to a home—a real place to land—in Florida until it was ripped away again. Or rather, burned to the ground.
Emberly’s voice softened, warm and grounding.
“I know, Nim. The house is coming along though. Sheetrock’s done, roof’s going up.
It’s slow, but it’s happening. Be patient.
With the house, with this. The Lord hasn’t left you.
Remember what He says: ‘When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.’”
Nimue’s throat constricted. Her faith felt like a frayed thread these days. “I don’t know, Em. If God’s here, He’s not exactly sending me a map.”
She rubbed her eyes, the weight of her choices crushing her.
“Patience, Nim.” Emberly’s voice sharpened—she was back in Black Swan mode. “Right now, you need to protect Liam. Keep tabs on him.”
“I just don’t know how without stepping into the open. He’s not a system I can hack. He’s…unpredictable.”
“What does he love? Where are his interests? Start there.” Emberly’s voice grew muffled for a moment, then returned. “Steinbeck needs help with something. But you’ll figure it out. Just keep him safe. Don’t get attached. I believe in you. Love you.”
The call ended, and Nimue pocketed the phone. Emberly was right—she needed to protect Liam, or at least keep an eye on him to see if he needed protection. But every move toward him was a risk, a step closer to the danger she was trying to outrun. She needed to find a way to get him to come to her.
“Lord, a little help here,” she whispered, the words clumsy but sincere. If Emberly was right and the Almighty still had a plan in this chaos, then maybe He’d show her the next step.
She climbed back into the bus, unstrapped her monitors, and reset her home base.
The familiar hum of her laptops pulled her back into her element.
In moments, her screens glowed to life, alive with encrypted logs and surveillance pings.
Step one: find out everything she could about Ranger Liam Kingsley.
Home was out there, waiting. She just had to survive—and keep Liam alive—long enough to find it.